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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. march — the month
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. race — a contest
  8. race — the arms race
  9. object — a thing
  10. march — the month
  11. bat — the animal
  12. capital — money
  13. march — music
  14. race — humankind
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. capital — a city
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. craft — boats
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. deal — to handle
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. craft — a skill
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. object — to protest

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com